7 sued over illegal pond filling in Ctg; locals claim key offenders spared

The Department of Environment (DoE) today (2 July) filed a case against seven individuals over allegations of illegally filling a pond in the KB Aman Ali Road area of Chattogram city. 

DoE Inspector Rupma Sikder filed the case under the Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, 1995 (amended in 2010), following an on-site investigation on 29 June, according to DoE officials.

However, allegations have surfaced that the DoE implicated innocent individuals in the case while sparing those who were actually involved in the illegal earth filling.

The accused in the case are Tahera Begum (57), Rehena Begum (58), Nasrin Akter (50), Jannatul Ferdous (48), Md Jabedul Alam (47), an expatriate in Australia, Ayub Ali (50), an expatriate in Saudi Arabia, and Md Morshedul Alam (70). 

All the accused are residents of the KB Aman Ali Road area. According to the case documents, some of them inherited the property, while others acquired it through purchase.

Locals alleged that the seventh accused, Md Morshedul Alam, has been named in the case despite having no stake in the pond. Moreover, they said four women named in the case had already sold their stakes to Jabedul Alam — the fifth accused — and one Gorfan Uddin, who were reportedly involved in the filling.

Locals further claimed that Jahedul Alam and Rashedul Alam, brothers of accused Jabedul Alam, supervised the illegal earth-filling and were served notices during the on-site inspection. Though they participated in a hearing held at the DoE on 1 July, their names were excluded from the case. 

Additionally, contractor Tariqul Islam Khokan, whose excavator was seized during the inspection, was also not named.

When contacted, plaintiff Rupma Sikder said, "During our inspection, we came to know from the locals that Md Morshedul Alam, the uncle of accused Jabedul Alam, was supervising the filling activity. So, he was named in the case."

Regarding the other accused, Rupma said, "The case names the landowners as per the Bangladesh Survey Khatian. The investigation officer will thoroughly investigate the incident and identify all those involved in the illegal act. If Morshedul Alam and others are found innocent, their name will be excluded from the final report."

According to the case documents, the DoE conducted an on-site inspection on 29 June after receiving a written complaint. The inspection team found that the pond located opposite Baromia Mosque had been filled over several days using domestic waste, sand, and soil. Measuring approximately 6,375 square feet, nearly two-thirds of the pond had already been filled.